The Arizona sentinel., 1887-03-26
TALES OF THE ROCKS.
The Past of Europe, as Told by
 Geology.
William I. and the New Forest-Ireland's Snakes - Physical Changes and Meteorological Facts-In
 the Matter of Diet.


 the Matter of Diet.
 l.
 All things new and old are weighed fin the balance ofsearching inquiry and assayed in the crucible of fierce criticism. Every increase of knowl- edge throws more powerful glare upon the things that are. As the light is concentrated and directed to the events of history or the beliefs of the present, some of them shrivel up and pass off in the smoke of exploded error. The gold of truth comes out purified from the dross of superstition, and as the lake flashes back the sunbeams from its surface, so it sends back re- flections from the searching light thrown upon it, and thereby stands more clearly revealed. It is, then, not surprising that the char acters of many of our Kings should be found varying with the amount of light thrown upon them. Now, a monarch's character appears in bright colors; and then; again, the increased light shows it much darker-the brightness has perhaps been only white wash laid on by some partial historian. In other cases, some plots disappear as the light grows stronger-they have, perchance, been only mud thrown hy some enemy. It is, however, strange and unexpected that geology should step in to correct the historian, and re- move a grave stain from the chara cter of one of England's Kings. We have all felt how greatly to the discredit of our First William was that making of the New Forest, of which we read in our histories. We learn how he laid waste villages, and drove out the inhabitants to make royal hunting-ground. Our histories relate it as a fact, and cast no shadow of doubt upon it.. And now geology stepsin and says that such thing never happened. An ex- animation of the geological features of the New Forest has led to this remark able conclusion: ''To the eye of the geologist, says Prof. Ramsay, cit easily appears that the wet and un- kindly soil produced by the clays and gravels of the district forms suffi- cient reason why in old times, as now, it never could have been cultivated and populous country, for the soil for the most part is poor, and probably chiefly consisted of native forest-land (that is, uncultivated land) even in the Conqueror's day"
 And so this geological bids us acquit our monarch of a stain which has rested on his name these long cen turies. Shall we, then, accept this evi- dence as conclusive, and let go the long-cherished~b of history? We can only reply in the words of Aristotle: 1.-The matter is before you-judge ot it" There are, however, two historic al considerations which should have made our chroniclers pause ere they accepted the story. In the first place, forests and wild beasts were, we should suppose, only too plentiful in England at that period. A vast area of the country was covered with woods, which doubtless swarmed with wild animals of various kinds. Is it likely that, under such circumstances, any one would take the trouble to make 8 forest for hunting? And then, Will. jam I. being foreigner, and having taken land from the natives for his own followers, stories to his discredit would be sure to arise. Some of this false coinage would be very likely to be cir, culated by distortions.
 Not only has the light of geological truth been thrown over the broad fields of knowledge, but it has also penetrated into various out-of-the-way corners and brought to light many odd and unsuspected facts. To account fol the smaller number of reptiles il Ireland, tradition says they were driven out by St. Patrick. And ever on this obscure problem geology ha' shed a light, and given scientifi, reason for the fact. It has been wei established by geological reasoning that Britain has been again and agaiI united to the continent, and as many times severed from it. Here. then, i the key to explain the mystery of tbt reptiles. It appears that there are twenty-two native species in Belgium eleven in England, and only five 1T Ireland. Professor Edward Forbe! drew attention to this, and explained it by supposing that they migrated from the continent westward while Britain and Ireland were united to it. Suppose them spreading from some continental center toward DIT land. We know that different species vary greatly in their powers O colonizing; spme spread quickly, ant others slowly During the eontinpanet